DAP should come clean on Act 355 Bill

MCA deputy president Wee Ka Siong (right) said DAP lawmaker Tony Pua loves to play the commentator after the fact.

It is incumbent on any responsible MP to remain and deal with all issues during parliamentary sessions instead of posting live Facebook feeds or videos from the corridors of Parliament.

Hitting back at DAP lawmaker Tony Pua Kiam Wee’s “hysterical outburst on his Facebook page”, MCA deputy president Wee Ka Siong slammed the DAP MP in a statement on Sunday that “Pua loves to play the commentator after the fact.”

“He said he was in the Dewan Rakyat throughout but he didn’t say a word in Parliament. Why not?

Wee stressed that Tony Pua should educate himself by reading and understanding the Standing Orders of the Dewan Rakyat where it was the absolute right of the House Speaker to decide on whether or not a motion can be tabled.

“I have said many times that it was the Speaker’s prerogative to allow (PAS president Abdul) Hadi (Awang) to table and explain his Private Member’s Bill.

“Tony Pua may not like this and can continue to whine about this but those are the rules and any responsible Member of Parliament is expected to understand and abide by it,” Wee said.

Although Kit Siang and Gobind Singh Deo had both asked the Speaker on whether or not Tawfik Ismail’s legal action and summons would affect the order of the House of Parliament or whether or not any discussion on the Private Member’s Bill may be considered as sub judice, the Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia had responded that the matter can proceed.

“After the ruling was made by the Speaker, DAP did not do anything else.

“Does this mean that DAP had given up on its rights to speak up?” Wee asked the Petaling Jaya Utara MP, Tony Pua.

Wee added that what he found more disturbing was the statement made by the PAS MP for Kota Bahru Takiyuddin Hasan that (amongst others) Kit Siang and Karpal Singh did not object to the amendment of Act 355 twice in 1984 and 1989, and this did not elicit any objection or response from DAP, not even Tony Pua.

“I would like to remind Tony Pua that showboating after the fact and after the parliamentary session has ended do not amount to an objection.

“I would also like to remind Tony Pua that according to the Pakatan Harapan Secretariat’s Chief Saifuddin Abdullah, in his statement said that Pakatan Harapan does not object to the Private Member’s Bill by Hadi Awang.

“I am now calling out Tony Pua and DAP to state their position once and for all, and that is:-

(a) Does DAP object to Hadi’s Private Member’s Bill, and what does DAP intend to do about this other than whining and howling at the moon?

(b) What is the position of each of DAP’s coalition partners on this issue? Are they objecting to this or not?

(c) What is Pakatan Harapan’s position on this?

(d) Do you have a consensus structure within Pakatan Harapan? If not, will DAP be outvoted within Pakatan Harapan?

Wee said that Tony Pua should consider responding as a mature politician and MP without the histrionics.

Hadi’s Bill seeks to amend the Sharia Courts (Criminal Jurisdic­tion) Act 1965 and raise the punishment cap in the sharia courts to 30 years’ jail, RM100,000 fine, and 100 lashes from up to three years’ jail, RM5,000 fine and six lashes.

BM

Malaysia Outlook is an online publication, incorporating news and analyses for "The Thinking Malaysian." This is in line with our aim to engage the younger generation in order to help build a thinking society. We also aim to dispel fake news and create awareness on the importance of good governance as well as to fight for truth and justice.

Contribute

Any events taking place that you think our team should cover? Send us your press invites, statements, releases, article ideas or letters to the editor at: